Pippa Crerar Political editor · 5 Feb 2024
A Labour government would extend the full right to equal pay that currently exists for women to include black, Asian and minority ethnic workers for the first time, under radical plans for a draft race equality bill seen by the Guardian.
The legal right, which would follow a consultation with business groups and unions, would be phased in to give employers time to adapt to paying all their staff fairly, with back-pay only available from when the law changes.
The change, which would also cover disabled people, would mean that equal pay claims on the basis of ethnicity and disability were treated the same as those made by women who, under the existing law, have more stringent protections.
Labour would also appoint a Windrush commissioner if it wins the general election to monitor the compensation scheme,
which has faced criticism over its slow rollout. The party has threatened to move the scheme out of the Home Office if it continues to fail.
The new commissioner would reestablish the Home Office team that was tasked with transforming the department after the scandal, but was disbanded last year, and act as a voice for the Windrush generation and their families as they seek justice.
Keir Starmer first promised a landmark race equality act in 2020 and later set up a taskforce chaired by Lady Doreen Lawrence, but the party’s failure to come forward with more detail had prompted some concerns over its commitment to tackling structural racism.
Inequality has risen over the last decade with black, Asian and minority ethnic families disproportionately hit by the pandemic and the cost of living crisis, as well being on the sharp end of cuts to education, the criminal justice system and the NHS.
Labour said it would expand access to mental health support, update clinical training to better serve the diverse patient population and bring in a target to close maternal health gaps experienced by black and Asian women. Black babies in England are almost three times more likely to die than white babies, according to figures released last year.
Anneliese Dodds, the shadow women and equalities minister, said: “It has never been more important to deliver race equality. Inequality has soared under the Tories and too many black, Asian and minority ethnic families are working harder and harder for less and less. This is holding back their families and holding back the economy.
“We are proud of our achievements in government, from the landmark Equality Act to strengthening protections against discrimination. The next Labour government will go further to ensure no matter where you live in the UK, and whatever your background, you can thrive.”
The proposed legislation, which the party will announce today, would enact protections against “dual discrimination”, where people face prejudice because of a combination of the protected characteristics that were originally in the Equality Act brought in by Harriet Harman in 2010.
A black woman who faces both sexism and racism or a Muslim woman abused for wearing a headscarf, for example, would be able to bring one discrimination claim, rather than needing separate claims for each protected characteristic.
Labour said this would have broader benefits for different groups of people including women experiencing discrimination during the menopause, as well as easing backlogs in the tribunals system.
The new legislation would also place a duty on public services – including the NHS, police, schools and councils – to collect data and report on staffing, pay and outcomes, where relevant, by ethnicity.
Measures that have already been announced, but would be covered by the proposed legislation, include mandating ethnicity pay gap reporting, ensuring that police officers and staff undertake antiracism training and reviewing the school curriculum to ensure it is diverse.
Party sources said the legislation would help deliver on its core mission to unlock economic growth through better jobs and more secure employment for black, Asian and minority ethnic people, which they claimed could be worth more than £26bn a year in increased salaries.
Dr Shabna Begum, the interim chief executive of the Runnymede Trust, a race equality thinktank, said: “Labour’s race equality act signals a much-needed pivot from the years of regressive and harmful policies we have seen under successive governments.
“We welcome many of the commitments including those that address discrimination in the workplace, the lack of representation in our school curricula, as well as the promise to enact the principle of dual discrimination.
“However, the plans fall short of addressing the formidable scale of inequalities that shape the experiences and opportunities of people of colour. Committing to address structural racial inequality needs to understand that racism doesn’t simply arise when the system fails – but that racism is actually sewn into the very fabric of the system itself.
“Labour must use the race equality act as a platform to commit to an ambitious, cross-governmental approach supported with sustained investment addressing the unacceptable – and in some cases worsening, disparities in health, housing, wealth and policing.”